Reading 1 and 2 Peter

From Gospel and Kingdom
by Graeme Goldsworthy

There was a breathtaking moment, having been a Christian for almost ten years, and then I did my first study of a Bible overview.  Prior to that I'd read through the Bible numerous times, been regular at Bible studies and sat under some pretty good preachers.  And then WOW! - I saw how this whole beautiful book held together and wondered where I'd been for the last ten years. 

Since then I have been big on helping others have that same WOW moment which serves, among other things, to keep daily Bible reading rich and exciting.  Come to any Bible study or reading group of mine or even a Sunday School lesson and there won't be too many weeks go past when I don't pull out this road map of the Bible or some other similar timeline and probably a Bible atlas as well, just so that we know where we are geographically, politically and chronologically.  A basic knowledge of this stuff brings the Bible alive.

Last year a couple of my groups wanted to read through Peter's epistles.  Before we tackled the letters we went BIG on context, spending several weeks getting to know Peter by working through as much of his life story as is recorded in the Bible.  Many of Peter's adventures are mentioned across each of the gospels so in choosing passages I endeavoured to choose the rendering that provided the most detail about Peter.  Of course the Bible is Jesus' story, not Peter's, but it was a surprisingly rich journey getting to know Peter the man, which then informed our reading of his letters beautifully.

So without further ado, here are the Peter passages we read before reading his letters.  It's a great reading project.  Maybe a fun summer holiday adventure.  You won't be sorry.  

Luke 5: 1-11   Jesus calls his disciples
Mark 1: 29-34   Jesus heals Peter's mother-in-law
Luke 6: 12-16   Choosing the twelve
Matthew 14: 22-36   Jesus walks on the water
Mark 5: 21-43   Jesus raises the dead girl
John 6: 60-71   You have the words of eternal life
Matthew 16: 13-20   Peter declares Jesus is the Messiah
Mark 8: 31-33   Jesus predicts His death
Luke 9: 28-36   The transfiguration
Matthew 17: 24-27   Jesus pays the temple tax
John 13   Washing the disciples' feet and Jesus predicting Peter's denials
Matthew 26: 36-38   Peter at Gethsemane
John 18: 1-14   Jesus arrested
Matthew 26: 69-75  Peter's denials
Luke 24: 1-10   Peter runs to the tomb
John 21: 1-25   Jesus reinstates Peter

...and then for a BIG Peter finish, read Acts 1-15.  My groups, both having studied Acts in recent times, did the abridged version of...

Acts 1-3  After Jesus' ascension and then onto Pentecost
Acts 10   Cornelius
Acts 12   Peter in prison
Acts 15   Peter and Paul sort themselves out

Good to note also as you venture into his letters that Peter was near the end of his life and ministry when he wrote them.

So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body,  because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things.                                                            2Peter 1: 12-15

He brings all of his passion, energy, loyalty and faith to bear as he pastors and exhorts those in his sphere to press on in Jesus, and passes the baton to the next generation.  It's really great reading.

Getting ready for 2019

Tim Challies posted a great article just before Christmas - Ten Suggestions for your Personal Devotions in 2019.   It's a great post - both for the encouragement to actively plan out a Bible reading strategy for the coming year and with it, some very helpful suggestions.

Since September 2017 I have been involved in this Bible Reading Challenge.  It's a nine month challenge, covering the northern hemisphere academic year, and in God's providence I stumbled upon it at the beginning of the challenge, right at a moment when I was really floundering in my personal Bible reading.  It was the perfect kick start. 

There's lots to love about this plan.  There's a women's and men's version - same plan but different graphics.  It gets you through the whole Bible in nine months and the sympathy in the pairings of readings is truly inspiring.  You can print off a plan to tuck in your Bible or it can be read through various Apps.  There's a Facebook group that's very encouraging - as people chip in their observations and ask their questions about different texts - and you can sign up for weekly emails too.  So much to keep you encouraged and it's wonderful to read along, knowing that thousands of others worldwide are reading and praying over the same passage on the same day.  Sundays are kept free and there are catch up days - and what's not to love about a catch up day?

They backed up this plan with a three month plan over the northern hemisphere summer which went through all of the New Testament, which I found a lovely thing to do through our winter.  And then the plan started all over again, with some tweaks, this last September for another nine months. 

For reasons good and not so good I have lost my rhythm with the plan this second time around so Tim Challies' post has come at a good time for me as I prayerfully make my plans for 2019.

So 2019 is looking a bit like this...

1. I am going to use this Five Day Bible Reading Plan - through the Bible in a year, five days of readings per week, loosely chronological.  I haven't used this one before and have been keen to give it a go.  
2.  I'm also going to work through Isaiah with a commentary.  I'm going to set aside an hour a week to do this - one chapter per week during school time and two hours per week in the holidays to catch up the extra chapters.  I'm planning on using Alec Motyer's commentary in the Tyndale series, unless someone has a better suggestion.  Feel free to chip in if you have any thoughts.
3.  I have set my older Sunday School kids a daily challenge - copying out a verse a day into a blank book, covering a different theme each month. January's theme is JOY.  I purchased this program from here.  The benefits for the kids includes getting them all over the Bible and seeing God's constancy through His story.  And it's always a good thing to slow the reading pace right down to writing speed.  (Side benefit: I will have tiny, daily - or as many days as I can manage - calligraphy session.)

"The new year is coming, and I, for one, am beginning to think about how I’m going to do my daily devotions in 2019. I know that for me to be consistent, I need to put some plans in place." - Tim Challies

How is your Bible reading going?

 

Long time readers of this blog will know that my preferred style of Bible reading is to follow a reading plan and endeavor to read right through the Bible each year.  Of course there are lots of different ways to read the Bible besides the annual read through model.  There's focusing in on a particular book and reading it multiple times over a month or more and really digging deep. Or reading a section slowly and thoroughly with the aid of a commentary.  Maybe following a theme or topic through the Bible. Reading in and around Sunday's sermon passage leading up to or following your time at church.  Small snippets. Large chunks. Random chunks.  Daily reading.  Weekly reading.  Random reading. 

How is your Bible reading going?  I ask because I want to encourage you with all my heart to keep persevering in the good work of growing in your relationship with God through His Word.  Here's why.

During the last three or four days I have heard news of various people in sudden and deep crisis. A couple of them are known to me personally. The others are known through friends and so I ache because my friends ache. Yesterday morning, unable to sleep, I gave in to my restlessness and got up to pray and read the Bible. I thought I would start with my daily reading and then maybe head over to one of Paul's letters or maybe some Psalms...some of those soft places to fall. 

My reading for the day included a passage from Deuteronomy and the stoning of Stephen in Acts. Deuteronomy and the stoning of Stephen would not be your typical "go to" passages in times of trouble. And yet they were such a comfort as I read about God promising through word and demonstration that He would be faithful, loving and sovereign in the lives of His people forever and then the example of a man, so certain of his faith in God that he stood firm through utter horror, spoke truth and prayed not for his own release but that God would forgive those stoning him to death and finally, that tender release from God at the end of his life.  

Comfort and courage.

The more I read the Bible the more I learn about God and about being one of His children - and the more I find comfort and courage in some of the most unexpected places of this big book.  There are certainly many "go to" passages in times of trouble or despair but the more I get to know all of God's Word, the more I see what I know to be true about God - His love, mercy, faithfulness, patience, justice, wisdom, sovereignty, holiness - in every page and so I can receive comfort and courage not just from the "go to" passages but also from simply reading the next bit and being reminded afresh of God and His good promises. 

If your Bible reading has fallen into a bit of a hole, or you never really got started, please let me encourage you to open your Bible and get going again.  Please don't be overwhelmed or think, "I could never get my Bible reading to that point."  I have a long way to go myself but in God's mercy and kindness I have got to this point by simply opening up the Bible on as many days of the year as I can and reading the next bit.  Every year is better than the one before.  And there is much joy in this lifelong project, most especially in the deepening of your relationship with God.

“You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.
Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”
John 6:67-69
 

Getting a bit more out of your Bible reading

Have you ever found yourself in certain parts of the Old Testament and wondered to your yourself, "Who actually are those Moabites?"  And while we're thinking about this, who are the Ammonites, the Amorites, the Jebusites, the Edomites - even the Canaanites - and countless other groups of people who never seem to be favourably disposed towards Israel and whose names end in "-ite"? 

There are some passages in Genesis that are hard to read because they contain lengthy lists of long names of people and places that are foreign to the eye and hard to pronounce and maybe, just maybe, we skip over them.  But in doing so we miss out.  As it happens these passages are rich with background information.

For example, imagine if you knew that Ham - he was the son of Noah who looked upon his father's nakedness (a big no no) and then gloated about it (worse and worse) - was the father of Cush, Egypt, Put and (wait for it) Canaan?

And then we find that...

Cush and his descendants pushed into and built up Babylon (one big enemy) and Assyria (big enemy number two) and among other achievements, built the city of Nineveh.  (Remember Jonah??)

Egypt's descendants (there's quite a list of them) include the Kasluhites from whom (wait for it) the Philistines (thinking of Goliath here) came.

And Canaan...well Canaan was the father of Sidon and of the Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, Hivites and various others, all of whom gave Israel a hard time during the times of Joshua.  That is, all the little nations that occupied the Promised Land.

All of that lot is just from the family line of Ham, son of Noah.  The son who did not honour his father.

Doesn't just even knowing that change the way you read a whole lot of the Old Testament?

And then there are the Moabites and the Ammonites.  They gave Israel quite a bit of grief.  Well, remember Lot?  After he escaped from Sodom with his wife (who was then turned to pillar of salt...but that's another story) and his two daughters, the three of them lived in the mountains because he was afraid to stay in Zoar.  (Let's not worry about Zoar at this point.  The main point is that they were hidden away in the mountains.)  The girls quickly worked out that there were no prospects for furthering the family line so they (ghastly bit) made their father drunk and took turns to sleep with him and both had a child.  Those children were Moab (father of the Moabites) and Ben-Ammi (father of the Ammonites.)  That changes the way you read about Moab and Ammon.

Edom.  The father of the Edomites was Edom (no surprises there), otherwise known as Esau - the twin brother of Jacob.  Now if you know the story of Jacob and Esau then you won't be surprised that every time the nation of Israel asked the Edomites for a favour the Edomites said no, in fairly strong terms.

I haven't even mentioned the Midianites, the Ishmaelites and a host of others.  But virtually every nation and people group the Israelites encounter as they make their way towards Jesus get a mention in Genesis.  And knowing the backstory of each of these people groups gives depth and understanding to the narrative.

Here are the key passages...

Genesis 9:18 - 29
Genesis 10
Genesis 15:17 - 21
Genesis 19:30 - 38
Genesis 21: 8 - 20
Genesis 25: 1 - 4
Genesis 25: 12 -18
Genesis 36

Take an hour to read over the words of those passages (including all of those hard to pronounce words) and see how many names and places and people groups you recognise.  It probably will take an hour but this is an investment for the future.  And be in awe all over again of our Sovereign and loving God who has planned all things and is in loving control of all things.

The Minor Prophets

Speaking of the Minor Prophets, if you are looking for a resource to help you get into the last twelve books of the Old Testament then "The Minor Prophets" by Jack P. Lewis is the book for you. This book has been around for a while but wait...wait...WAIT!  Don't switch off.  Because I have just read some reviews of this book and lots of them said words to the effect of, "Still one of the best guidebooks to the Minor Prophets."

Not that I had to read the reviews to find out about this book.  I have just used it in preparation for Monday evenings and have studied it two or three times in the past during similar tilts through this section of the Bible.  And I often refer to it during my personal reading of the Minor Prophets when it gets to that point in the plan.

Why?  Because it's short, concise and supremely useful.  There is a chapter, each one no more than ten pages, for each prophet.  Every chapter includes some general information about the prophet, where he fits into biblical history and dating as can best be determined (and where there is some debate Lewis outlines the possibilities.)  There is a general overview of the book, a structure and some commentary on significant sections, key concepts and on some of the trickier bits than cannot be left unexplained.  It's detailed but not technical.  You can read it and reasonably speedily.  Towards the end of each chapter Lewis mentions where each prophet is quoted or alluded to in the New Testament and brings the reader back to Jesus.  And every chapter finishes with a short set of astute study questions. 

I don't think this book is in print anymore which is a huge shame but a quick search shows that there are still plenty of copies to found here and there.  And if you are serious about learning not just to understand but to love this part of the Bible then this is THE book for you.

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The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever.
The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous.

They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb.
By them your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward.

Psalm 19:7-11

Some help for tackling the book of Ezekiel

I've been toughing my way through Ezekiel recently.  It's a tough book about tough times.  Ezekiel knew some very hard times.  He lived through the siege and sacking of Jerusalem and was carried off into exile by the Babylonians.  (Reading through Jeremiah gives a clear picture of just how horrible it would have been to have lived through that time.)  And Ezekiel - God's messenger to His people in exile - was deeply, deeply aware and heavily burdened by the blackness of sin. 

So many of the pictures and messages recorded in the book of Ezekiel are largely of pain and hardship.  There is clear judgment for God's people who have persisted in their sin and turned their backs on the One who loves them.  There is clear judgment for the nations who have scorned God's people. And then there are the natural consequences of bad decisions.  It is hard reading.

And yet, the words "Sovereign Lord" are mentioned over 200 times throughout the book.  This is what the Sovereign Lord says.  This is what the Sovereign Lord will do.  This is what the Sovereign Lord is doing.  In all the hardship, confusion and grief, God is present and with a purpose.  Natural consequence is fair and God's judgment is righteous.  And that righteousness and purpose is borne out in a second phrase that appears time and time again - "Then they will know that I am the Lord."  And so the book of Ezekiel, in all that is tough, is filled with hope because for all who cry out and turn to the God who loves them, there is the promise of restoration and peace for all eternity.

Ezekiel presents a snapshot of a particular time in the history of God's people.  It's also a timeless message for all people - God's very good creation - through all of history because even though the details are different, the reality is much the same.  But back to the book and how to get into it...there is hope through God's sovereignty, love and righteousness to be found on every page of Ezekiel - and looking for that will assist in the very worthwhile work of persevering through the pages of this book for deep insight into times past, present and future.

I'm planning to read the Bible next year...

...and I already have in mind the plan I am planning to use.  You may think next year is too far away to be making such plans. 

But if perchance you have big plans for your Bible reading in 2015 here's my tip for the day.  Start now.  Today.  I don't mean starting your 2015 reading plan today - although if you did you could certainly get well ahead and avoid the need for catching up later on if things don't go quite to plan...  No, I mean start reading the Bible today.  Because research shows (actually, I have no empirical data to back this up) that if the Bible reading habit isn't there, doing all that New Year's resolution stuff probably isn't going to help beyond January.  So start today, form the habit and be up and running by the beginning of the new year.

Want some reading ideas to see you through to January? 

You could read one or more of the gospels in the lead up to Christmas.  John plus one of the others is always a good combo. 
Reading Luke and Acts - one running on from the other - is a great project. 
Or read John, the letters of John and Revelation.  Being familiar with the language and themes of John adds an extra layer of richness when you tackle Revelation. 
An interesting Old Testament project is to read Ezra and Nehemiah (the history books covering the return from the exile) with (and this is the bit that makes it super interesting) their accompanying prophets Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi - the  last bit of Old Testament action before all goes quiet leading up to Jesus.
And if you need some Psalms, numbers 90 to 100 are pressed down, shaken together and running over (Lk 6:38) with adoration, grace, joy and pastoral care.

Go well.  The best book to read is the Bible.

Bookends and the minor prophets

On most Monday evenings I will be found in the front room of our house with two really gorgeous women, cups of tea at the ready, reading the Bible à la One to One Bible Reading.  We've been doing this for a few years, on and off.  This year we set ourselves what in hindsight has been an absolutely marvelous plan.  We decided to read the bookends of the Bible - Genesis and Revelation - and then work our way through the minor prophets. 

Given some basic understanding of what happens in between these books, reading the bookends really does provide the grand sweep of the big picture of God's loving plan for His creation. We have been amazed time and time again at God's amazing mercy, grace and love for His people and at the rate of about three chapters per week, we will read the final three chapters of Revelation in a week's time.

Tacking the minor prophets on the end was a bit random.  We just decided it would be good to do a closer reading of these neglected little books.  That was it.  But it turns out that having looked closely at what happened right at the beginning in Genesis and then understanding what is happening now (and what we need to do about it) and what will happen when Jesus comes again in Revelation provides the perfect backdrop for reading the minor prophets - books that are full of warnings to repent before the coming judgment and words about the glory and the horror of the Last Day.  We couldn't be better prepared for the old minor prophets.

Are you looking for an interesting reading project?  This is it.  And as much as I LOVE my Bible reading plan it is good to read the first chapter of Genesis at a time other than 1st January.  Sometimes fresh eyes are helpful.

I've started doing a bit of pre-reading for the minors and found these great words from They Echoed the Voice of God: Reflections on the Minor Prophets by Roger Ellsworth on dear old Habakkuk.

Though the fig tree does not bud
    and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
    and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
    and no cattle in the stalls,
 yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
    I will be joyful in God my Savior.
Habakkuk 3:17,18

Here is a vital question for each of us to consider:  Do we draw our happiness from our circumstances or from the Lord? 

We can surely see the importance of this question.  If we insist on finding our happiness in our circumstances, our lives will be like rollercoasters.  We will be happy one moment and sad the next.  Why?  Because our circumstances are constantly changing.

But if we find our happiness in the Lord, we will always be happy.  The Lord never changes.

I would probably change the word "happy" for "joy" in at least a couple of places - a minor detail.  And later in the same chapter...

We seem often to forget that salvation from sin and eternal destruction is a blessing of such magnitude that we should rejoice even if God never blessed us in any other way.

Now that is something to ponder.

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Speaking of Revelation, did I mention two weeks ago that I would do a prize draw for a copy of A Gospel Pageant and that I would announce a winner a week ago?  Oops!  The number of those in the draw was small.  Two.  And as it happens I have three left over copies of the book.  So Sarah and Wendy, a copy each coming your way at some stage soon.  

Bible reading for the year ahead

How did your Bible reading go in 2013? I know of five dear ones who have been having a tilt at using a reading plan to get through the Bible in a year this year and I have been praying for each of you.  Whether you made it to the end or not, my prayer now is that it has been a wonderful journey no matter how far you got and that you are spurred on to press on.

Probably you already have 2014 sorted, but if not...

If you started in on a plan but stumbled and fell, here are three wonderful options...

1. Start again.
2. Pick up from where you left off.  This has the advantage that you will not be tied to calendar dates and that might take the legalism out of the exercise if that is a danger for you.  And it gives you the space to slow down or speed up as time, need and want allows.
3. Choose a new plan and start afresh.

If you are looking for a new plan or a first time plan here is THE place to go.  My three favourites are...

The Daily Reading Bible Plan - which takes you through the Psalms and New Testament twice and the rest of the Old Testament once.  Three readings a day.

The Chronological Bible Reading Plan - affectionately known as the CBRP, which takes you through the Bible in Chronological order - three to four chapters a day.

Every Day in the Word - four short  readings that take you through the Psalms twice in the year and Proverbs, the rest of the Old Testament (from front to back) and the New Testament once.

Each of these takes me about ten to fifteen minutes per day if I don't stop to linger.

If taking on the whole Bible seems too much, then I would suggest using either the first or third plan and just reading the New Testament and maybe the Psalms readings each day.  The Daily Reading Plan will take you through those readings twice in the year.  Everyday in the Year will take you through the New Testament once and the Psalms twice.  This would be a great start to forming a life long, life giving habit.

Please let me know if you are going to use a reading plan.  I would love to pray for you. And please pray for me too.  Don't think for a minute that I have this all sown up.  I love reading the Bible. Yes, yes, yes.  But that doesn't mean it isn't a battle at times. 

Oh, and how did I go in2013?  I used the Every Day in the Word plan this year and kept pretty well on track until September or October, which is a bit of a record for me.  I spent the last part of the year falling behind and catching up again, finishing yesterday. 

This year I am back to the Daily Reading Bible Plan.  I have been encouraging (some would say nagging) friends at church to read along with me this year and I think a few are going to join in.  It will be great to spur one another on in this.  And next year (yes...I already know what I am doing in 2015, God willing) I hope to do the same plan but starting at the beginning of the year in the middle of the plan - at the beginning of the New Testament and Psalms and in the middle of the Old Testament - because it will be time again to give the poor old Prophets the fresh end of the year and my attention.  They were a little short changed this year...

Happy reading.  Happy New Year.

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,  and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. 
Colossians 1:9-12

Treat your time in the Bible like you treat your meal plan.

Yesterday there was a great post on the Desiring God site called Five Back-to-School Basics.  You may have missed it because

1.  maybe you don't live in the northern hemisphere, and
2.  so you aren't going back to school at the moment, or
3.  maybe you're just not at school at all. 

Perhaps I would have missed it too except that I, lover of lists and with a small hint from the title of the post, keenly observed the five point list.  And so I read it. 

The five points are:-

1. Thinking may be the most critical thing you ever do.
2. The most important book you'll read this fall is your Bible.
3. Someone younger than you needs you.
4.  Comparison in the classroom can be the birthplace of pride.
5.  Only the gospel saves anyone, even A-students.

They are great principles and they extend far, far beyond the reach of students in the classroom.

I especially liked point number two (but you already knew that) and most especially this part (emphasis is mine)...

Because of all the assigned pages, you’ll be tempted to sideline your Bible reading until the next test has passed, the next paper is done, or the next break is here. Instead, treat your time in the Bible like you treat your meal plan.

Your time soaking in Scripture will be the most fruitful and shaping time of your education. Nothing can replace the wealth you will find there, and nothing will prepare you better for life, family, vocation, or even your next class.

It is so easy to put off time in God's Word.  I know.  I really, REALLY know.  But I am amazingly diligent with my meal planning.  We eat every day.  What a great aim to be so hungry for God's Word that it receives the same priority as meal planning.

Read the whole post here.  It doesn't matter if you aren't going back to school this August.  The principles still apply.

Slowing down

What to do about those really, REALLY tricky Bible passages...so hard to understand but you know they're important and you really ought to try to nut them out.  And what about those other passages, the ones that are SO familiar that you find yourself gliding over the top of them and barely taking in the detail?

Here are a couple of things I do when I need to slow my Bible reading right down in order to absorb and understand what I am actually reading. 

Firstly, I read the passage aloud.  Yep.  Even if I'm by myself.  I get to read bits of the Bible aloud with others quite a lot during the course of any given week.  In speaking and hearing the words I often notice things that I would have otherwise missed when I'm just on my own and my eyes are flying across the page so I am convinced there are benefits to speaking and hearing the Bible as well as reading it silently.   So when I get to a passage, even when I am just reading the Bible on my own, and I'm just not taking it in - because it is too hard, too familiar or I'm just not concentrating - I read it out aloud.  It makes a big difference. 

The second way I slow down my reading, and this is especially helpful for those tricky passages, is to write it out.  Pen and paper.  It's slower than typing.  Much slower than cut and paste.  I see things that my eyes miss as they fly over the page.  And if the passage is really, really, ESPECIALLY difficult I write it out almost like a list, with the smallest possible unit of meaning per line.

Take those first six verses of Romans, for example. 

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God —  the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures   regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David,  and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God  by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.   Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.   And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

Oh my.  There is SO much in those six short verses.  But not many fullstops.  And I have to say, I quite like short sentences.  So look what happens when I break it down into its smallest possible units of meaning.

Paul,
a servant
of Christ Jesus,
called
to be an apostle  
and set apart 
for the gospel
of God — 
the gospel he promised
beforehand 
through his prophets 
in the Holy Scriptures  
regarding his Son,
who as to his human nature 
was a descendant
of David, 
and who through the Spirit
of holiness
was declared
with power
to be the Son of God 
by his resurrection
from the dead: 
Jesus Christ our Lord.  
Through him
and for his name’s sake,
we received
grace  
and apostleship
to call people
from among all the Gentiles  
to the obedience
that comes
from faith.  
And you
also
are among those
who are called
to belong
to Jesus Christ.

I learn so much about Paul, Jesus, God and myself just by attending to each little phrase a little more slowly.  Doing it by hand is arduous in some respects.  But very rewarding. 

One to One Bible Reading

You may have gathered that I am rather enthusiastic about Bible reading.  I talk about it quite a bit on this blog and as it happens, I talk about it quite a lot in real life too.  And then I get to hear lots of reasons why people don't read the Bible.

I don't have the time.
It's not interesting.
It's too hard.
I'm not a reader.  I don't read anything much.
I've read bits of it but...
It's for Christians.

Hold that thought.

I meet with three small groups of women during the week and together we study the Bible.  Until this year, two groups did Bible studies and the third was a Bible reading group.  I made the third one a Bible reading group because most of its members had small children who tagged along and with  small children rattling around the place, I thought it would be too difficult to attempt a Bible study.  Besides, most of the group didn't have a background in regular Bible reading.  And the phrase "Bible study" sounded too scary.

So the Bible reading group meets for lunch - everyone brings their own - and then after food and chatting we settle down for about an hour of Bible reading.  We pray and then read a chapter of the current book we are working through.  At the end of the chapter I ask the same two questions - 

Did anything stand out?
and
What didn't you get?

Most are usually happy to talk about something that stood out.  Sometimes we tackle something we didn't get.  Lots of the time we just leave the things we didn't get - and that's OK.  It's not that I want to promote a form of laziness in Bible reading.  Trying to nut out the hard stuff is important.  But read on...I'll get back to this.  If there is time, energy and the children are playing well, we do another chapter.  Sometimes we get through three chapters.  Mostly it's one or two.  The discussion eventually finds its way to some points of personal application and then I close with a short prayer.

Last week I picked up One to One Bible Reading by David Helm.  WHAT A GREAT BOOK.  It's all about how to read the Bible with someone else on a regular basis for a mutually fixed amount of time, just as my Bible reading group has been doing for a while. 

In the book he covers:
why reading the Bible with someone else is a good thing,
who you could read the Bible with,
how to get started,
what a typical time together would look like, and
the question of whether or not to prepare before meeting together.

Helm then provides two different frameworks for reading - a simple approach called The Swedish Method which runs a bit along the lines of my two question technique (it adds the third question of personal application up front, whereas I tend to let the application gradually drift out in discussion or through my wrapping up prayer) and a slightly more detailed approach (the COMA method - Context, Observation, Meaning, Application). 

The final part of the book is a resource section with an excellent overview of the different types of books in the Bible and some ways to get into the different genres, including some photocopiable sheets of COMA questions for each of the genres.

One of the things I really love about this book is that it is short and concise.  I read it in an hour.  Now I am thorougly convinced of the benefits of one-to-one Bible reading so what I was reading was all very familiar, but if this idea is new to you and you need some pondering time as you read, I imagine you could still knock it over in a couple of hours.  It gets straight to the point, it's eminently practical and it demonstrates the benefits and joys of tackling some one to one Bible reading.  It is the perfect handbook on this subject.

Feeling worried even so?  Don't think you know your Bible well enough to take this on?

Any committed Christian is capable of initiating a good conversation on a biblical text.  In reality, your fears in this area of personal work betray two Screwtape-like lies that every Christian must resist.  First, that gospel growth depends on us and on our abilities.  This is simply not the case.  Our proficiency in the Bible is not the final arbiter in seeing spiritual growth occur.  The Holy Spirit can and does use timid people just like us.  The second lie we fight against is disbelief - disbelief in the potency of God's Word.  We need to be reminded that God does his work in his way and it is his word that accomplishes whatever he desires in the world.  (Page 24)

Still worried about having a go?  Then go and find someone further along in their Bible reading than you and ask to read with them.  You don't actually have to head the charge here.  The point is to read the Bible with someone.  (By the way, there is a good section addressed to the person "heading the charge" as it were - about resisting the temptation to give a lecture about the passage being read.  Nothing kills one to one Bible reading than one person  dominating the discussion.  I may or may not be guilty of this.)

One of the things I really love about one to one Bible reading is that yes, the Bible is hard in parts - but we need not be scared of it. 

As I said earlier, we often don't tackle the bits we didn't understand with my little lunchtime group .  A recent, glorious example of this was when we read through Joel a few weeks ago.  Three chapters.  I departed from my usual method of one chapter at a time and we read all three chapters at a run.  Then I asked my two usual questions and for once everyone was happy to answer the second question - "What didn't you get?" - and everyone pretty much said they didn't get any of it! 

One brave soul then ventured to say that there were a couple of verses that stood out, that made her heart sing, in the midst of a whole lot of incomprehensible text.  It was a couple of verses about hope.  So we looked at those verses and had a good discussion about hope in Joel and then in ever widening Biblical contexts. 

I wrapped up our discussion by saying that we should all make a mental note of those two verses because in fact they help in part to inform the rest of this book.  The next time we all read Joel (on our own or together) we can do so with those two verses in mind and Joel will be a little more clearer.  And then even clearer the time after...

Because that is what Bible reading is like.  We don't get it all on the first sweep.  And we do get to read it over and over, time and time again.  And each time we will get it a little more than before, as what we understand starts to inform what we don't understand in ever widening circles.

Come back to my lunchtime group.  In the time since we started reading together, all thanks to God, some have put their faith firmly in Jesus and others have started tackling reading the Bible on their own.  They don't understand all of what they are reading, but they are no longer scared to have a go.  They are making it a part of their daily routine and have launched into the lifelong, wondrous pursuit of  Bible reading.  Nutting out the hard stuff (that would be "Bible study") will come later, as a natural progression.

I have seen all the reasons so often given for not reading the Bible dissolve away with this group, all because we have sat down once a week during school term time over two or three years and simply read the Bible together.  And for this reason I made some changes this year.  I now have two Bible reading groups and one study group.

Click here to order a copy of One to One Bible Reading (or here for the eBook version).  It is easy to read and it may just encourage you to get yourself caught up in that beautiful, chaotic web of personal relationships, Bible reading and prayer.  Go for it.  Be encouraged.  It is a rich blessing. 

For the word of God is living and active...

Hebrews 4:12a

Imagine if...

Imagine if all Christians, as a normal part of their discipleship, were caught up in a web of regular Bible reading - not only digging into the Word privately, but reading it with their children before bed, with their spouse over breakfast, with a non-Christian colleague at work once a week over lunch, with a new Christian for follow-up once a fortnight for mutual encouragement, and with a mature Christian friend once a month for mutual encouragement.

It would be a chaotic web of personal relationships, prayer and Bible reading  - more of a movement than a program - but at another level it would be profoundly simple and within reach of all.

It's an exciting thought!

From The Trellis and the Vine (page 57) by Tony Payne and Colin Marshall (Matthias Media) and quoted in One to One Bible Reading (page 12) by David Helm

And a new take on ACTS

ACTS is another and very well known prayer schema.

Adoration
Confession
Thanksgiving
Supplication

It's a really helpful way to organise one's prayer life, praying one's way through that list, and it ensures that prayer doesn't degenerate into a whiny, needy shopping list.  I have used it often, although not slavishly or exclusively.

But as I listened to Tim Keller's sermon on prayer at the pool I was delighted to learn of a new way to use this schema.  He described using ACTS as a means of meditating on Scripture.  He suggests taking a short passage of Scripture and then, having read through it a handful of times, pray through it using ACTS.

The very next day I was reading Matthew chapter 22, which includes these famous verses:

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.   And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

And I decided to have a go.

Adoration - what a GREAT God we have, that He is worthy to be loved with all our heart, soul and mind, and that he gives us people (neighbours) to love.  And what a great God that He gave us Jesus.
Confession - DO I love Him with all my heart, soul and mind?  And do I love my neighbour (and I started with my own family) as I love myself?  There was plenty to confess there - we were well into the long school holidays by then!  This section probably took me the longest.
Thanksgiving - for a God who forgives, for a God who invites us to be in relationship with Him and to love Him with all our heart, soul and strength, for a vast array of neighbours to love, that those I love also have big hearts to forgive me when I don't love them as well or as fully as I should.
Supplication - for a bigger heart, capacity and desire to love God with all my heart, soul and mind and to love my neighbour as myself, and for new and creative ways in which to do this.

I have had some good times of "meditating on Scripture" in the past but generally I either don't do it or when I do try, find myself floundering or distracted pretty quickly.  I found this use of ACTS profoundly helpful - I think it will be a very useful tool as I learn how to pray in God's will without distraction and am looking forward to applying it to many other passages from the Bible.

This Year's Bible Reading Plan - Mid Year Review

As I blogged here, I have been using this Bible reading plan this year.  It has involved reading a portion of the Old Testament, the New Testament and a Psalm each day.  It runs through the Old Testament and New Testament in order, front to back, and across the course of an entire calendar year you get to read the Old Testament once and the New Testament and Psalms twice. 

I have really enjoyed reading the Bible in this way.  Initially I found it a little disjointed but that's because for the last ten or more years, as I have endeavoured to read through the Bible each year, each day's reading has been from only one section of the Bible at a time.  So it did take a while to settle into moving across three sections of the Bible each day.  But I am well into this routine now and am loving it.

This particular reading plan has been really thoughtfully constructed.  Each day there is anything from three to six chapters of the Bible to read, depending on the length of the chapters.  For example, if there is a particularly long Old Testament chapter, then they only list the one OT chapter for reading that day.  Other days there may be three shorter chapters to read.  It has been all worked out so that each day's reading is approximately the same length.  I can get through the set reading in about 15 to 20 minutes if I don't pause to meditate or pray.

Now in ten days time we will turn the calendar over to the new month of July.  And this reading plan reaches its half way point.  On 1st July the reading plan starts at 1Chronicles (and here is some help to navigate Chronicles) and it starts back at the beginning of the New Testament and Psalms.  So if you are floundering about and would like a good plan, I warmly recommend you have a tilt at this one.  You have ten days to have a think about this, pray about it, print the plan out and get yourself prepared for 1st July.  Go on.  You won't be sorry.

The Bible is God's Bible; and when I see it, I seem to hear a voice springing up from it, saying, "I am the book of God; man, read me. I am God's writing; open my leaf, for I was penned by God; read it, for he is my author, and you will see him visible and manifest everywhere. —Charles Spurgeon

(From Charles Spurgeon's sermon of 18th March 1855  HT: Desiring God)

My Bible Reading Plan for 2010

Ever since I became a Christian I have endeavoured to read through the Bible once a year. I became more convinced of the importance of doing this in 2001 when I took a year off work to do some study at a theological college. While at college the principal commented that he reads through the Bible each year because it is his major tool of the trade. Now I am not the principal of a theological college, although one might argue that being a mother makes you the deputy principal of your own little theological college at home. But whether I am a principal or a mother or anything else, I think it's important to keep reading the Bible in a systematic, organised and disciplined way and my personal preference, at least for daily devotional reading, is to keep sweeping through the Scriptures year by year.

In terms of being systematic and organised, I have used various reading plans, some written by me and some written by others such as:

• Starting at the beginning and reading through to the end
• Alternating an OT book with a NT book
• Systems that get you through the OT once and the NT twice, book by book
• A plan that did OT book, NT book, a few Psalms, a gospel and then repeating the cycle - designed to read through the gospels many times in order to really get to know Jesus. This one was a two year project.

Now I said that I have endeavoured to read through the Bible each year. Some years have been successful and some have been anything but successful - if the measure is to get to the end of the plan by 31st December each year. There is always benefit, as long as the Scriptures are read but I have certainly floundered these last few years to get all the way through any plan I find or devise. And I always get bogged down in the same spot. Yes, you know which spot it is. Those prophets! And it has become SUCH a problem that I knew I needed to do something drastic about it in the new year.

So I have been praying about an approach to take in 2010. At the time I was praying about this, Jean wrote a post at Equip where she linked to Justin who provided this LIST of Bible reading plans in this post. (I know, too many links there! THE link to follow is probably the one in capital letters. Thank you Jean for finding this really helpful resource. Praising God for you again and again.)
In surveying the possibilities, I have decided to head in a different direction and use THIS reading plan for the year ahead. Rather than go through whole books at a time, it provides a portion of OT, a portion of NT and a Psalm every day and in the year gets through the OT once and the NT and Psalms twice. The OT and NT books are covered in sequential order so it isn't a wacky, all-over-the-place reading system, but it does break up the books each day which means that I won't have to fear wading into the Prophets for weeks and weeks on end, which does my unfit brain and timid heart in every time.
I haven't read the Bible like this in years. I'm looking forward to it. I'll let you know how it goes.

Reflections on Reflections

If you click here it will take you to a link from the Desiring God blog of an interview with John Piper about his devotional Bible reading . Reading the interview is a worthwhile endeavour, if for no other reason, than to catch a beautiful glimpse of a humble heart.

But there is plenty there to encourage and inspire as well. Here are some things that caught my attention.

Firstly, John Piper gives about an hour per day to his quiet time. He reads four chapters of the Bible (four chapters per day will get you through the Bible in a year), taking about twenty minutes. He then prays for twenty to thirty minutes, leaving five to ten minutes per day to memorise Scripture. I don't think I have ever thought of using this particular part of the day to memorise Scripture. But I like the idea.

To memorise Scripture he chooses a verse, reads it ten times and then closing his Bible and/or eyes, says it ten times. "Ten times read, ten times said and you've got it, " he says. The next day he repeats that verse five times (for revision) and then moves onto another verse. I tend to go phrase by phrase throughout the day, adding more on as phrases are mastered. I've recently started trying to memorise some Scripture again and generally aim for two verses a week. I wonder if my brain could do a whole verse at a time and that many a week? There's a challenge to exercise the brain!

Piper also explained why he memorises Scripture - and it is not so that he can boast that he can say the whole of Leviticus from memory. And nor is it to merely exercise his brain. (A personal rebuke slipping in there.) No, he memorises Scripture so that at 3pm, when the good effects of his morning quiet time have worn off, he has Scripture in his heart and mind to keep fighting the good fight. He memorises Scripture so that if he is talking to someone about the things of God and he hasn't got his Bible with him, he can still be sharing from the Word of God. John Piper memorises carefully chosen Scripture for the good of his soul and for the good of the souls around him - not to be clever, to have a fit brain or to boast. John Piper is a humble man.

The other thing that caught my eye was that when he prays for his twenty to thirty minutes, he prays for his family, the church and his soul. Whoa! He prays for his family, the church AND HIS SOUL.

Now, this is not rocket science, but I don't think (at least during these busy days of life with young children) that I pray for my soul. There is much to pray for with my family and the church. Yes, I pray many prayers of confession. I ask for help a great deal. But I don't think I pray for my soul - that I will grow in my knowledge and love of God, in my trust and dependence upon Him - even though I pray this for lots of other people. I think I hope that through my reading, thinking, prayerfulness for others, actions, the need to confess that invariably follows my actions and so on, that my soul will just grow...

Life as one of God's children is such an adventure. There is always something more to consider. And that is good. This interview contains plenty to encourage those new to reading the Bible right through to seasoned readers of the Scriptures. If having a quiet time is a part of your life - or you want it to be - then the few minutes it will take to read this article will be time well spent.